Mop-cleaning device



' Feb. 12, 1957 c. o. DICKINSON 2,780,822

' MOP-CLEANING DEVICE Filed 001:. 26, 1953 Jim Gttotneg I ited Application October 26, 1953, Serial No. 388,226 1 Claim. (Cl. 15--142) This invention relates to a device for cleaning mops and other long-handled floor-sweeping implements.

An object of the present invention is to provide a, device that has particular use by j-anitors and other personnel that clean and maintain the premises of large building areas to facilitate removal of dirt and other accumulations from floor-sweeping implements and, particularly, long-handled mops. 1

Another object of the invention i to provide a portable device of the character indicated which a janitor may readily move from place to place and which embodies mop-cleaning means and means to receive and store, for subsequent disposal, the dirt dislodged from a mop.

A further object of the invention is to provide a wheelmounted mop-cleaning device that is subject to small mufiied shock attending a mop-cleaning operation and which will remain stationary regardless of said shocks.

A still further object of the invention is to provide, in such a device, novel and improved mop-cleaning means.

The invention also has for its object to provide such means that are positive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a working position and easily disconnected therefrom, economical of manufacture, relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear in the course of the following description. However, the drawing merely shows and the following description merely describes, one embodiment of the present invention, which is given by Way of illustration or example only.

In the drawing, like reference characters designate similar parts in the several views.

Fig. 1 is a top plan View of a mop-cleaning device according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation-a1 view thereof.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged and fragmentary sectional view as taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1 and showing a mop in the proces of being cleaned in the present device.

The mop-cleaning device that is illustrated comprises, generally, a portable truck 5, a dirt receptacle 6 removably mounted on said truck, and mop-cleaning means 7 provided in said receptacle.

The truck essentially comprises a base 8, a pair of wheels 9 mounted at the rear of said base, and an upstanding frame 10 that terminates at the top in a handle 11 by means of which the truck is movable on its wheels. At or near its forward end, said base is provided with resilient pads 12 that are advantageously made of rubber or comparable material to have frictional engagement with a surface 13 along which the truck is movable. When the truck is to be moved, the handle 11 is used to tilt the same rearwardly so as to be supported on surface 13 only on wheels 9 and, thus, readily movable along said surface from place to place. In the position shown,

the frictional engagement of said pads with surface 13 will serve to retain the truck stationary and against creeping under influence of any shocks attending use of the cleaning means 7.

In the present case, frame 1%) is provided with a cross member 14 of sufficient strength to support the receptacle 6 and to take the mentioned shocks. Said member is preferably positioned near the upper end of frame It While omittedfrom the drawing, suitable braces may connect said frame and base 8 to impart rigidity to the structure. Also, said base may be provided at it forward edge with an upturned member 15 that serves both as a bumper and, therefore, may be padded, and as a means to retain the position on the truck of sweeping implements, as suggested at 16.

The receptacle 6 comprises a rigid rectangular tubular member 17 having front, rear and side walls and that is open top to bottom, and a fabric or similar container 18' that is'removably connected to the bottom of member 17. It will be clear that any refuse deposited in the open top of member 17 will be received by container 18 and that the latter, from time to time, may be emptied after removal from member 17. The mentioned cross member 14 of truck frame 10 supports the receptacle as by hangers 19 afiixed to the rear wall of member 17. These hangers, together with clips 20 on said wall which are engaged with the truck frame, hold the receptacle vertically, as shown.

The above-described manner of mounting the receptacle on the truck enables removal of the former so that it can be hung from hangers 19 from any other place, as from a wall, if desired.

The mop-cleaning means 7 is embodied in member 17 and comprises a coarse-mesh screen or grid 21 disposed within said member on a slope from the upper rearward portion thereof forwardly beyond the lower portion of said member, guide means 22 provided in the side walls 23 of member 17, forward of and parallel to said screen or grid, and elastic means 24 spanning across each said guide means.

Fig. 3 shows a mop of the type contemplated to be cleaned by the means 7, the same comprising a back 25 of elongated form, a multiplicity of limp cords, strands or the like 26 afiixed to said back and which comprise the mopping element of the mop, and a stick handle 27 that extends from the middle of said back.

The present cleaning means 7, by removing accumulations of dirt on the mop strands 26 to be received in container 18, enables continued efiicient use of the mop.

The grid 21 is comprised of interlaced Wires or rods 28 so spaced longitudinally and cross-wise as to admit the strands 26 therebetween substantially as shown. Thus, when the mop is moved along the face of the grid, in any direction, said strands are wiped over the wires 28 and the contemplated dirt dislodgement is effected. The guide means 22, being parallel to said grid, guide the handle 27 so that said mop strands have proper association with the grid. To minimize Wearing friction on the handle 27, the guide means, which comprise top-open slots 29 formed in wall 23, are provided with resilient padding 30. By providing the guide slots in both walls 23, the mop may be applied to the cleaning means from either side, selectively.

The elastic means 24 constitutes a resilient bumper against which the mop handle 27 may be struck to create considerable dirt-loosing shock on the mop. Said means 24 comprises elastic members 31 strung between opposed hooks 32, and it will be realized that the up and down movement of the mop is rendered easier due to the upward propulsion force in said members 31 when stretched.

A shown, the grid wires 28 are strung on a rod frame 33 which terminates at the bottom in spaced relation to the front wall 34 of member 17 thereby affording a space 35 in said member through which refuse may be deposited into container 18.

Member 17, at the front, may be provided with suit able clips 36 to removably retain the handles of sweeping implements 16, and the rear wall of said member may be provided with hooks 37 for a paraphernalia-hold-' ing receptacle 38.

While I have illustrated and described what I now contemplate to be the best mode of carrying out my invention, the construction is, of course, subject to modification without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is, therefore, not desired to restrict the invention to the particular form of construction illustrated and described, but to cover all modification that may fall within the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim and desire to be secured by Letters Patent is:

A mop cleaning device and refuse truck comprising a substantially rectangular base, a pair of floor engaging wheels mounted on said base, at least one rubber pad mounted on the underside of said base, said pad and said wheels being adapted tosupport said base in a horizontal position, an upright frame mounted on said base, the lower end of said frame terminating adjacent the pair of wheels and the upper end terminating in a handle, a rectangular member mounted on the upper part of said frame and directly above said base, said member being open at the top and bottom and having front, rear and two side walls, there being a forwardly inclined slot in each side wall, said slots being open at the top and closed at the bottom and having a resilient padding along the edges, an elastic bumper mounted on each side wall across the bottom portions of the slots, a forwardly inclined grid extending between said side walls, said grid lying in a plane parallel and adjacent to the plane of said slots, and a refuse receptacle detach-ably suspended from said rectangular member for receiving refuse from a mop moved up and down over said grid.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 378,608 McClung Feb. 28, 1888 2,108,352 Sund Feb. 15, 1938 2,121,426 Dickinson June 21, 1938 2,636,207 Reece Apr. 28, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 341,405 Italy June 24, 1936 603,625 Great Britain June 18, 1948 

